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N.C. lottery making an impact, but it has its critics, too

Published: Sunday, April 28, 2013 at 12:42 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, April 28, 2013 at 12:42 a.m.

Selling hope is big business in North Carolina.

Every lottery ticket is a winner before the drawing or before the player starts to scratch, and the dream of making millions has helped pump close to $2.7 billion into public education in North Carolina since March 2006. That is about 5 percent of the state's education budget, lottery officials said.

“Education is the single largest expenditure in state government,” said Alice Garland, the lottery's executive director. “To be 5 percent of that, I think is pretty significant.”

Sales of the N.C. Education Lottery are expected to reach $1.6 billion this year, according to officials. Last year, the lottery sold $1.4 billion. An audit of the lottery by Wisconsin-based Delehanty Consulting found that the North Carolina lottery is one of six lotteries started since 2002 to show a yearly profit increase.

“In fact, the (N.C. Education Lottery) is one of only three U.S. lotteries to achieve profit growth every year from 2007 through 2012,” said Herb Delehanty, the principal of Delehanty Consulting, in a February letter.

“Although the North Carolina Education Lottery ranks five of six in its peer group in profits per capita, the performance trends are quite positive. Sales, profits, number of retailers and sales per retailer have consistently increased from fiscal year 2008 through fiscal year 2012.”

A healthy lottery is not only good for the state's winners, but for its education system and retailers, officials said.

“The audit was a nice affirmation that we're doing the right thing here,” Garland said. “We've done a really good job to increase sales year over year. That is something we've worked hard to achieve.”

The N.C. Education Lottery was created in August 2005. The first ticket was sold on March 30, 2006.

“We are still in the new phase,” said Garland, who replaced the lottery's first executive director, Tom Shaheen, in 2010. “We're still adding to our portfolio of games. We really want a lot of people to play just a little bit, not a few people playing a lot. The only way that you bring in new players is by offering games you haven't offered previously.”

But the lottery is facing some opposition in Raleigh. The state House voted earlier this month to place restrictions on how the lottery markets itself, namely publicizing the odds of winning and banning lottery commercials at college sports venues, according to the Associated Press.

Rep. Paul Stam, R-Wake, called the lottery a “scam,” according to wire reports.

“This bill does not repeal the lottery,” Stam told the Associated Press.”It just makes it a little bit more honest.”

Garland said there will always be naysayers who don't support the lottery, but she argued 100 percent of that revenue goes to the state's education system.

The money has built schools, funded prekindergarten programs, and provided scholarships, officials said.

“We pay for 15 percent of all K through third-grade teachers in North Carolina,” she said. “We're making small differences in education but they are differences that really matter.”

<p>Selling hope is big business in North Carolina.</p><p>Every lottery ticket is a winner before the drawing or before the player starts to scratch, and the dream of making millions has helped pump close to $2.7 billion into public education in North Carolina since March 2006. That is about 5 percent of the state's education budget, lottery officials said.</p><p>“Education is the single largest expenditure in state government,” said Alice Garland, the lottery's executive director. “To be 5 percent of that, I think is pretty significant.”</p><p>Sales of the N.C. Education Lottery are expected to reach $1.6 billion this year, according to officials. Last year, the lottery sold $1.4 billion. An audit of the lottery by Wisconsin-based Delehanty Consulting found that the North Carolina lottery is one of six lotteries started since 2002 to show a yearly profit increase.</p><p>“In fact, the (N.C. Education Lottery) is one of only three U.S. lotteries to achieve profit growth every year from 2007 through 2012,” said Herb Delehanty, the principal of Delehanty Consulting, in a February letter. </p><p>“Although the North Carolina Education Lottery ranks five of six in its peer group in profits per capita, the performance trends are quite positive. Sales, profits, number of retailers and sales per retailer have consistently increased from fiscal year 2008 through fiscal year 2012.”</p><p>A healthy lottery is not only good for the state's winners, but for its education system and retailers, officials said.</p><p>“The audit was a nice affirmation that we're doing the right thing here,” Garland said. “We've done a really good job to increase sales year over year. That is something we've worked hard to achieve.”</p><p>The N.C. Education Lottery was created in August 2005. The first ticket was sold on March 30, 2006.</p><p>“We are still in the new phase,” said Garland, who replaced the lottery's first executive director, Tom Shaheen, in 2010. “We're still adding to our portfolio of games. We really want a lot of people to play just a little bit, not a few people playing a lot. The only way that you bring in new players is by offering games you haven't offered previously.”</p><p>But the lottery is facing some opposition in Raleigh. The state House voted earlier this month to place restrictions on how the lottery markets itself, namely publicizing the odds of winning and banning lottery commercials at college sports venues, according to the Associated Press. </p><p>Rep. Paul Stam, R-Wake, called the lottery a “scam,” according to wire reports.</p><p>“This bill does not repeal the lottery,” Stam told the Associated Press.”It just makes it a little bit more honest.”</p><p>Garland said there will always be naysayers who don't support the lottery, but she argued 100 percent of that revenue goes to the state's education system. </p><p>The money has built schools, funded prekindergarten programs, and provided scholarships, officials said.</p><p>“We pay for 15 percent of all K through third-grade teachers in North Carolina,” she said. “We're making small differences in education but they are differences that really matter.”</p><p><i></p><p>Kevin Maurer: 343-2339</p><p>On <a href="http://www.starnewsonline.com/section/news41"><b>Twitter</b></a>: @StarNewsKevin</i></p>